As societies develop, languages evolve.
Researchers analyzed Stone Age and modern skulls. Different jaw placements allow our mouths to make different sounds. With a database of 2,000 languages, out of the 8,000 languages in existence today, sounds were identified that showed frequently used sounds and where.
“New sounds are introduced into languages and then are widely adopted,” said Steven Moran, a linguist at the University of Zurich. The idea that agriculture shaped language was first suggested decades ago by American linguist Chares Hackett, but he did not attempt to prove it.
The English language always has fascinated me. So today, I have thought of words that seem to carry great meaning with just one, two, three, or four words put together.
So let us begin.
A one word sentence is the word please. How much this one word signifies is important to all of us. Adding the word please to any request shows manners and decorum. I hope that every small child learns this word before preschool, and when to use it.
Counterpoint is the two-word sentence of thank you. How many times have you opened the door for someone behind you and they keep going as if it is their expected due that you would take care of them? How often does someone say thank you, instead?
A three-word sentence is I love you. I have noticed recently that those words are said without much thought or feeling. I have had those who said I love you without any action on their part to prove their words. And I am reminded of the thought that watch their actions because their words can lie. A family member always says I love you and hasn’t visited or phoned me in two years. Not even a birthday card. So her words are meaningless. Be sure when you tell someone you love them that it is a true and honest statement. And then by your actions, prove it.
Which brings us to the next idea. Will you marry me? is a four-word sentence. It has a lifetime meaning of true commitment. A man decides that he wants you and only you to be his bride and offers his hand forever. A woman then has to decide if he is the right man for her until death do us part. These four words are neither frivolous, nor spoken with haste.
This next one is the daily menu or Carte du jour. Love the sound of that. I have saved a menu from January 6, 1980 while visiting in London. Especially like the words, Savouries, and Le Plateau de Fromages, or to be precise a plate of cheeses. Food words especially enchant, such as brochette, croquettes, chateaubriand, or vinaigrette. Don’t forget the delicious raspberries, watermelon, cantaloupe, or blueberries.
Two words to note are kiss me or hug me. How very soothing is a hug given and received by those we care about and who care for us. Some people give the best hugs and others hardly touch. Often wonder what they are afraid of to keep such distance? I met a friend for lunch and when we were parting, he gave me a real hug and it felt wonderful.
Touch hands. A complete sentence that means a great deal. When I see an older couple holding hands, I smile, thinking that they have spent a lifetime in each other’s company and still stay connected. When I visit friends at their retirement homes, I sometimes help with the wheelchairs of others as they move to eat breakfast. One man recently told me it saved his arms and legs to have such help. It doesn’t take a great deal of time or effort to please even a stranger.
Is it morning? Three words. Must be because I have energy and will and a list of things to do that day. Benjamin Franklin said “Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.”